Gardening
Everything you need to know about buying spring-flowering bulbs
We’re doing bulbs in a whole new way
Our new flower bulb supplier, Kapiteyn, has been breeding and growing bulbs for almost 100 years. Kapiteyn was at the vanguard of bulb products for garden centres from as early as 1930, when Europe’s very first garden centres were evolving. It’s fair to say they know bulbs!
It’s no surprise that they are constantly coming up with ways to spread the love for bulbs far and wide. One of the best ways to reach new audiences is to make things as easy as possible and that is exactly what they’ve done. Last year we saw some of their innovative new packs, and they flew out of the shop. This year, there are even more new products and collections. As this is quite a different way of selling spring-flowering bulbs we wanted to talk you through them and explain how you’ll find what you’re looking for.
There are five different bulb sections on our website under ‘Seeds and Bulbs’. They are:
Bulbs with a Story
Lovely Combinations
The Popular Collection
Shades of Colour
Urban Gardening
Bulbs with a story
All the flower bulbs in this range have one thing in common. They all have a story to tell. From the sweet-smelling tulip to the tulip that is just perfect as the ‘something blue’ on your wedding day, each pack is delightful and surprising. Our favourite is the ‘ice cream tulip’ – a double tulip in the colour of strawberry ice cream with what looks like a big blob of whipped cream on top. Yum! Completing the collection is the Ostara allium, named after the Germanic spring goddess Eostre, representing spring and new beginnings. She was traditionally honoured with deep reddish-purple flowers, the shade of the Ostara allium.
Lovely Combinations
This section is for the tulip lover. These packs need very little by way of introduction. Some colour combinations just go better together and Kapiteyn has done
the hard work for us. Combinations are already selected for you. Find a combination to suit you from our range, plant the tulip bulbs and enjoy the colourful extravaganza in the spring.
The Popular Collection
Here is where you’ll find your favourite spring-flowering bulbs in single-variety packs. Pack sizes vary, from one bulb to 20 depending on the variety. Go here for the popular spring bulbs such as tulip, hyacinth, gladiolus, narcissus (daffodil), iris, crocus, anemone and allium, but you’ll also find lots of unusual and beautiful varieties such as Bellevalia, Chionodoxa, Dichelostemma (similar to alliums), Erythronium, Geranium Tuberosum, Ipheion (spring starflower) and Scilla (squill).
A full list of the bulbs stocked in the Popular Collection is: Fritillaria, tulip, hyacinth, Bellevalia, Chionodoxa, Dichelostemma (similar to alliums), Erythronium, Geranium Tuberosum, Gladiolus, Ipheion (spring starflower), iris, muscari, Scilla (squill), crocus, anemone, cyclamen, narcissus, daffodil, allium.
Shades of Colour
These handy packs are a dream for tulip lovers. Again, they take the hard decisions out of garden planning. You simply choose a colour and the pack provides 30 bulbs of various tulip varieties in shades of that one colour. Choose from shades of orange, yellow, red, pink, violet and white and look forward to lots of interest and difference within one colour note.
Urban Gardening
This section has some really great innovations. It’s dedicated to those living in an urban environment who want to have nature close to home and is all about turning those grey spaces green. The innovative packs in this section take all the garden design decisions out of spring bulb planting. These packs are ideal for the city garden, which could be as small as a balcony, but can be used anywhere.
Ready-to-Plant
Paving and concrete are not good for biodiversity, nor are they inspiring to look out at, but with the ready-to-plant packs in the Urban Gardening collection, all that can change. Each pack contains a mix of different bulb varieties in complementary colours that we know will look great together.
Remove a paving stone, prepare the earth and drop in the entire biodegradable plant-o-mat. Cover with compost, water and you’re done!
You can of course drop these plant-o-mats in your borders, pots or containers. It’s the same principle – Dig, Drop, Done! No garden design talent needed! Kapiteyn has made all the right decisions about colour, variety and placement.
Plant-o-mats come in circular and rectangular shapes so you can choose the best one for the space you want to green. The rectangular ones contain 38 bulbs and are called Balcon-o-mat.
Lasagne Packs
Think layers… Different bulbs come to life at different times and the clever people at Kapiteyn have taken this fact of nature and turned it into another innovative product. Follow the instructions and have flowers all through the spring-flowering bulb season. Perfect for pots and planters as well as flower beds and borders.
In need of a patio makeover? Try the Patio Packs or Patio Container Packs.
Patio Packs
Packs of multiple bulbs in a single variety for a show of welcome colour in your pot come spring. Also suitable for borders. Available in blue hyacinth, pink hyacinth, and narcissus and tulip varieties.
Patio Container Packs
This collection contains the most popular bulbs from around the world allowing you to create amazing flowering pots and beautiful borders. Packs of two complementary flower varieties or colours for your patio pot or border, for example, tulip orange and narcissus cream for a warm colour combo or anemone blue and tulip white for cool.
A word on bulb quality
Kapiteyn flower bulbs are strictly monitored by independent specialists. The guidelines are so strict that flower bulbs that do not meet the requirements simply cannot be sold. You can rest assured that the flower bulbs you buy and plant in your garden are the best of the best.
So whether you’re a seasoned gardener who really enjoys planning out each season’s look, or just want a pop of colour in the spring to look forward to without too much effort, we know you will be delighted with the new bulb products and packaging. Do let us know what you think!
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